Going Coed

by Miller-Bernal, Leslie; Poulson, Susan L.

• ISBN13: 9780826514493
• ISBN10: 0826514499
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2004-07-30
• Publisher: Vanderbilt Univ Pr

Summary

More than a quarter-century ago, the last great wave of coeducation in the United States resulted in the admission of women to almost all of the remaining men’s colleges and universities. In thirteen original essays, Going Coed investigates the reasons behind this important phenomenon, describes how institutions have dealt with the changes, and captures the experiences of women who attended these schools. Key issues covered include: the impact of the women’s movement and the development of women’s studies as an academic discipline, the pressures exerted on institutions by economic necessities and legal challenges, and the strategies women have utilized in adapting to formerly all-male environments.

Author Biography

Leslie Miller-Bernal is a professor of sociology at Wells College. Susan L. Poulson teaches history at the University of Scranton. She is now collaborating with Miller-Bernal on a study of how women's colleges have responded to the challenge of coeducation since the 1960s.

Table of Contents

Preface	ix
SECTION I The History of Coeducation
1 Introduction Coeducation: An Uneven Progression	3	(19)
Leslie Miller-Bernal
2 Two Unique Histories of Coeducation: Catholic and Historically Black Institutions	22	(33)
Susan L. Poulson and Leslie Miller-Bernal
SECTION II Coeducation before the Late 1960's
3 To Coeducation and Back Again: Gender and Organization at the University of Rochester	55	(25)
Christine Lundt, Susan L. Poulson, and Leslie Miller-Bernal
4 A Historically Black Men's College Admits Women: The Case of Lincoln University	80	(31)
Leslie Miller-Bernal and Susan Gunn Pevar
SECTION III Conversion to Coeducation in the Ivy League
5 A Friendly Rivalry: Yale and Princeton Pursue Parallel Paths to Coeducation	111	(42)
Marcia Synnott
SECTION IV Masculine Cultures and Traditions
6 "Men of Dartmouth" and "The Lady Engineers": Coeducation at Dartmouth College and Lehigh University	153	(28)
Mary Frances Donley Forcier
7 Women's Admission to the University of Virginia: Tradition Transformed	181	(17)
Elizabeth L. Ihle
8 Coeducation but Not Equal Opportunity: Women Enter Boston College	198	(23)
Loretta Higgins
SECTION V Structural Issues
9 A Religious and a Public University: The Transitions to Coeducation at Georgetown and Rutgers	221	(24)
Susan L. Poulson
10 Coeducation after a Decade of Coordination: The Case of Hamilton College	245	(18)
Leslie Miller-Bernal
SECTION VI Coeducation beyond Liberal Arts
11 "Toxic Virus" or Lady Virtue: Gender Integration and Assimilation at West Point and VMI	263	(24)
Diane Diamond and Michael Kimmel
12 Women's Movement into Technical Fields: A Comparison of Technical and Community Colleges	287	(22)
Regina Deil-Amen
13 Conclusion: Coeducation and Gender Equal Education	309	(8)
Susan L. Poulson and Leslie Miller-Bernal
Contributors	317	(4)
Index	321